Jozy Altidore interest confirmed as Jermain Defoe trains with Tottenham

There is no such thing as a slow news day during the offseason as a pair of potential transfers continue to develop for Toronto FC.  Along with that reported interest in Emmanuel Adebayor the club are working towards a potential deal for American forward Jozy Altidore and the sale of Jermain Defoe moving closer as the English forward is set for a training stint with Tottenham Hotspur.

After Taylor Twellman took to twitter to casually mention that Altidore was in talks with MLS and that three teams were interested in him the story has continued to pick up steam.  A number of other outlets have confirmed the reports and added a few details along the way.  One major detail came from the Toronto Sun's Kurt Larson who spoke with Greg Vanney and confirmed that TFC are indeed throwing their hat into the ring for the 25-year-old forward.

So we know that Toronto FC are interested in the forward but there are certain to be other MLS teams that would also like to add someone of Altidore's quality.  The initial tweet from Twellman included the Portland Timbers and New York Red Bulls along with TFC as the main teams in the running for the Sunderland player.

It seems we can take New York out of the running though as they feel the price for the player is too high.  A report on ESPNFC from Doug Mcintyre indicates that despite being ahead of the other two interested clubs in the allocation order the Energy Drinks are out of the running due to the financials of the deal.

The report suggests that Altidore is looking for a salary in the $5-6 million range which would put him in the same pay bracket as his USMNT teammates Clint Dempsey and Michael Bradley.  Add on to that the fact that the player remains under contract with Sunderland and the club will almost certainly be looking for a multi-million dollar transfer fee for the player that they spent nearly $10 million on just a year-and-a-half ago.

The price tag seems to be quite high for a player who has failed to fill the back of the net since he left AZ Alkmaar but a return to MLS might just be what Altidore needs to get his career back on track.  His cost would certainly not fit with the new, more frugal direction that the Red Bulls seem to be heading this offseason after the retirement of Thierry Henry.

So that leaves two front runners for Altidore and both teams seem to be in position to afford his price tag.  The Portland Timbers may not have the kind of money that MLSE boasts and certainly do not have the history of spending that TFC have but they have been in the running for bigger signings in recent seasons.

While TFC are potentially moving closer to bringing in a new DP one of their current ones seems to be easing his way towards the exit.  While the transfer rumours in the English press continue to link Jermain Defoe to just about every single club facing the threat of relegation or in need of some added scoring nothing concrete has come out yet.

What we do know for sure now is that Defoe is going to be spending the next week squarely in the shop window as he works to show potential suitors that his injuries of the summer are not behind him.  While TFC are spinning it as the player training to prepare for the new season it is easy enough to read between the lines of the news that Defoe will be training with Tottenham this week.

Having Defoe training at Spurs should be good for both the player and the club as proving that he is close to match fitness and no longer dealing with nagging injuries should only increase his value in the January market.  With very few forwards of his calibre likely to be available this month a fit Defoe could be a big addition for any number of clubs and could see TFC sell him for close to what they spent on him last year or even make a small profit.

The last bit of transfer news for the day was another piece from Larson's article which was Vanney commenting on the club's search for defensive help.  While it is obvious to everyone looking at the current roster that the team is in need of more CBs the interesting note was Vanney directly addressing Damien Perquis as one of the potential additions.  The coach confirmed that the defender is one of several options that they are looking at in their search for someone to partner Steven Caldwell at the back.